Vegetables and Yummy Foods—Together?
The typical answer from my almost-four-year-old for, “What do you want for lunch” or “What do you want for dinner” is: “Mac and Cheese.” Or “Pizza?” “A plain bagel toasted with a little-little butter?” “Chocolate milk!” Does this sound at all familiar?
After reading (numerous) books on getting your children/toddler to eat I decided that none of them would really work for my pseudo-vegetarian lettuce-loving son. He refuses to eat meat, which is why I say “pseudo.” We’ve even tried hiding meat (organic, of course) in his food…but he finds each little piece and picks it out.
As long as he can’t SEE it, then we’re golden.
That’s where the websites: www.sneakychef.com and www.mealmakeovermoms.com have come in handy.
I’ve hidden white and black beans (great source of protein), cauliflower, corn, and sweet potatoes in the mac and cheese. I’ve hidden red beans and added extra tomatoes on pizza. That plain bagel? It can be found with his little-little butter, along with white bean puree (more protein!). And that chocolate milk? Well, you can’t win ’em all.
Another trick—letting him help me cook. This way he tries everything and I know what I can get away with. Pizza is a new one for us, but it made me realize that he loves pineapple, olives and mushrooms as long as they’re warm.
One of my favorite recipes from Sneaky Chef is Light Mac N Cheese. It’s made with a white or orange puree that can be frozen or kept in the fridge to use when you need it (for various recipes). Great if your kids eat mac n cheese as often as mine do!
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How do you get your kids to eat vegetables? Tell us what tricks have worked for you (or not)!
About Allison Diedreck
Allison is a stay-at-home Mom to Caleb and Claire. With both kids now mobile and needing attention for what feels like 25 hours a day, she has her hands full, but loves (almost) every minute of it. Allison went to school for English and Journalism and has worked at numerous newspapers, including The Stranger, The Seattle Times, Robinson Newspaper Group and Messenger Post Newspapers. She also did a four-year stint with Paychex, Inc. before deciding to become a stay-at-home Mom in October 2009. She has discovered the joys of 1-2-3 discipline and early bedtimes. Besides reading and writing, Allison loves to travel and cook. She is constantly listening to music and typically has a cup of coffee in hand. Originally from, well, many places, Allison dreams of living at a beach with the jet-ski as her mode of transportation.